HP Accused Of Expiring Ink Cartridges

from the must-use-by... dept

What is it with printer manufacturers and their increasingly sophisticated means of screwing over the customers who buy ink from them? Even going beyond various attempts at using technology to block out competition, printer makers have long been accused of having their printers claim a cartridge is empty when it's still 25% full. However, some consumers are claiming that HP goes a step further, and includes a "must use by" date encoded in the chip in their ink cartridges, meaning that if you don't use the ink by a certain date, no HP printer will let you use it any more. It's not clear if the complaint focuses on the fact that this exists at all, or (more reasonably) that the expiration date isn't given to consumers. HP's defense, of course, will most likely be to point out that older cartridges may clog up, causing damage to the printers. Which may, in fact, be true. However, without telling the buyer that the cartridge expires, they may have opened themselves up to trouble, as many people will assume the cartridges will remain good.

Reader Comments

Stupid and Greedy HP

I am being driven mad with a stupid "Ink Expiration Near" message show up on HP Photosmart 6100! It is telling me that the yellow ink is about to expire (if I understand correctly), so why the hell I cannot use it any more? It basically stop there and does not allow you to push any button! Any single button!

So how do I print the thing I need tomorrow morning? My ink has not expired yet, why should it stuck here? Tell me! Stupid and greedy HP! I will never ever by another HP printer in my life time!